Check out Amy’s new post at Stand to Reason on the media reporting on Obama’s ESCR wizardry. Heavens ta mergatroy, folks just don’t know which end is up on this issue. I’m thinking Obama does. He’s smart enough to know he’s coming at it both ways. He knows what he’s doing. That, after all, is the real disconcerting thing: he’s up to something. I haven’t trusted him all along, but this seminar in tomfoolery isn’t helping my confidence in the Prez.
Sadly, I believe we have many among us who use the excuse of becoming culturally relevant to justify their unhealthy media consumption. These are Christians who claim that their knowledge about movies, TV shows, albums, and so on, helps them to witness. But does the exposure to pollution really enhance witnessing abilities?
In my experience, no. I’ve watched a few movies I shouldn’t have, and they’ve never provided a single opportunity to share Christ’s love with someone. In fact, I believe those who do not know Christ sometimes feel comforted by the innocence of a Christ-follower. It is a position on life that stands out.
Truth be told, many of the things we commonly watch harm us spiritually, whether we acknowledge it or not. I hear lots of folks splatter all sorts of claptrap about wanting to be relevant to the culture, “why are you so uptight?” and “it’s just TV,” but typically all that’s a cover…we just want to watch what we want to watch and we really don’t care what it does to us spiritually. Neither do we care about honoring Christ in everything we do.
I’m seeing a significant number of my Christian friends not just take in something questionable every now and then, but imbibe a steady diet of this stuff.
I can’t count the number of Christian friends who fall over themselves watching sitcoms like Family Guy, movies by Jud Apatow (SuperBad, Pineapple Express) and The Daily Show. With F.G and J.A movies, they are so crass and vulgar that I seriously don’t see how anyone could deny they affect your mind and heart negatively. With the Daily Show, I can see someone tuning in every once and a blue moon so that they can mindfully critique John Stewart’s hufflepuff, but being a devoted fan? C’mon. Let’s have a conversation and see what turns up in your thinking. I’ll go to Vegas on the bet that your worldview and affections for the good are affected by it much, much more than you care to acknowledge.
On that note, I’m not just talking about all the sexual jokes, tiresome Bush-is-dumb shtic, and general liberal worldview subtly packaged as comedy. My main focus is the irreverance. It is the air John Stewart and his 20-something male demographic breathes. I know many won’t view it this way, but I’m beginning to see that this irreverance, which is expressed all over the place in our culture (ever check out the top performers at Digg?), is a strong force keeping boys from shedding their Peter Pan tights.
Hey, I’m all for laughs and a good ol slapstick joke, but the type of humor these shows specialize in is a horse of a different color.
We Americans cling tightly to the notion of autonomy. If we don’t want something to affect us, it won’t; that’s the attitude. PHHHHH! If that were the case, advertising wouldn’t be the billion dollare enterprise that it is.
In addition, for those who watch Family Guy and such, could you see yourself plopping down on the couch with Jesus to watch those things? Could you see yourself walking into the theatre with Jesus to see Sex Drive and SuperBad?
BTW, this isn’t legalism. If you don’t think this has anything to do with your spiritual life, you are fooling yourself. It’s all connected. Everything is spiritual (to borrow a Rob Bell phrase. Don’t agree with much of what he’s about, but I agree with that one), and the human propensity for self-justification is ubiquitous.
Really, we just gotta be more honest with our motivations for watching what we watch. We claim to follow Christ, but in this area, he doesn’t really factor into our choices…at all. For people that fervently sing such passionate worship songs to Jesus on Sundays, that’s a bummer.
Need I say the answer? It’s a no brainer: the numbers go up. More money=more abortions. I feel silly pointing out the obvious.
Spare me all the blatherskeit about Obama attacking the root cause of abortion (i.e, making other options more available, more contraception). Talk is cheap. What does Obama’s record say? Honestly answer: given a good, hard look at his record on abortion, do you really think he’ll seek to make other options more appealing? Even if he does, do you really think that will even begin to outweigh every other pro-abortion decision he’ll make? It’s doubtful increased welfare spending will do the trick anyway.
Again, who gives a rip about whether or not the man says he cares. Look at his record. Continuing to hope he’ll move the pro-life cause forward is a fool’s gambit, folks, plain and simple.
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Quite a few times now, when I tell some of my guy friends that I’m engaged, their reaction goes something like this:
“How old are you?”
29.
“What’d you do that for?”
It’s predictable; there are a plethora of pressures in this culture that tell men to become boys and run from responsibility. Some of it comes from a society that tells men they can have all the sex they want commitment and consequence free. Some of it comes from the divorce statistics. Some of it comes from well meaning folks in the church, who beat the divorce statistics until they are dead and twitching. These folks tend to dwell a tremendous amount on the hardships of marriage, and they give scant attention to all the joys.
When you’ve just heard the 12th sermon warning of the stumblings of married couples, how kids wear you out and make you think nasty thoughts, and how “50% of Christian marriages end in divorce,” blah, blah, blah, it’s no wonder guys aren’t exactly excited about getting married. My word, these days Paul’s phrase “it is good for a man not to marry” is repeated ad nauseum like it’s some Eckhart Tolle incantation. I’m tired of it, frankly.
There’s not much talk, both inside and outside the church, about responsibility being a manly calling. Very few talk about how responsibility is hard, and that because it’s hard, it’s good. It stretches you, and like any hard task, it transforms your selfish character. We tend to miss the fact that the commitment of all one’s being to another person for life is a noble honor worth pursuing.
Yeah, so you’ve got to give up your independence. So…..what?! Maybe, just maybe, that’s a good thing. You get to give yourself away in a uniquely intense fashion. Why do we think that the XBox, Mac-n-cheese dinners, and weekend trips to Vegas with the guys are somehow better? Anyone ever ask that question? Sure, they can be more fun in the short run, but more meaningful?
I’m not married yet, so I don’t know what marriage will be like. I’m willing to bet it actually will be hard at times. But this makes me want to run towards, not away from marriage.
I love my fiance’, and therefore I’m looking forward to giving up my independence. I consider the responsibility a joy, and I want to embrace it…that’s what I tell the man-boys who think I’m selling short. I hope they never forget that.
It’s a weekend that I wait for all year long. The day after, I moan and groan because it will be another 365 days before it happens again.
The weekend I’m talking about is March Matness. No, that’s not a typo; I’m not much of a basketball fan. I’m talking about the Division I NCAA Wrestling Tournament. I absolutely long for this weekend and can’t wait for it to come around every season.
This time, my beloved Buckeyes nearly pulled off an incredible upset, finishing second to perennial powerhouse Iowa by a mere 4.5 points. The difference is miniscule–one, maybe two more wins for the Bucks or losses for the Hawkeyes would have been enough to sway the standings in our direction. Given the number of medical defaults Iowa received (a medical default is when you automatically win because your opponent is injured. Think of it as a forfeit.), the number of overtime matches they won, and the number of overtime matches we lost, a 4.5 point difference is a mere pittance. GAH!!!
I absolutely can’t get enough of all the personal interest stories that crop up every year, like that of J Jaggers, aka, “Mr. March.” They all inspire, uplift, and amaze me.
Why am I getting all worked up over wrestling?
Wrestling, much like its athletes, is a unique, yet highly misunderstood sport. Most people, because they haven’t been exposed to it in any meaningful way, don’t give a darn about it. It just ain’t sexy. Whenever it comes up in conversation, the statements I hear most often are: a) “you guys run around in sweats all the time and never eat. That’s dangerous!” and b) “Wrestling is gay.” The latter statement is the one preferred by my just slightly immature and homophobic 9th grade students, but adults have uttered it on occasion as well.
credit: revwrestling.com
Very few people can fathom my fascination with the sport. 99.9% of the people who “get it” were either wrestlers themselves or are married to one.
All sports can be great crucibles to shape character. The practice and dedication required to become skillful can burn discipline into the soul. On the flip side, athletes of all stripes are prone to displays of pride, narcissism, and arrogance. Wrestlers are not immune to this temptation. Brent Metcalf’s boneheaded retaliation after his finals loss, along with the lame excuses he offered in the following interviews, is a prime example.
Here is part of the match:
Here is the unsportsmanlike move at the end of the match:
Nevertheless, wrestling is the best character crucible of all sports-wise, IMO.
Wrestling won’t get you paid, laid, or made, as one author put it.It’s all guts and no glory. The stipend for a team USA wrestler, for instance, is somewhere in the neighborhood of 1000 dollars a month, so many need part time jobs in addition. Former Olympian Melvin Douglas, worked at Home Depot in his gladiator days.
Perhaps the most common physical mark of a wrestler is “cauliflower ear.” It looks so disgusting, yet many wrestlers wear it with pride as a sort of “red badge of courage.”
cauliflower ear...credit: uwec.edu
It is the world’s purest sport. While there is a team aspect to it, at its most primal level, it pits man against man in clean combat. No gloves. No pads. No helmet. No raquet, ball, or stick. Just a mouthpiece, a headgear resembling ear muffs (many forego the headgear), and your body. It totally exposes your abilities, dedication, and heart. In a basketball or football game, it is possible to pawn your mistakes off on other team members. Not so in wrestling. If you make a mistake or don’t prepare enough, there is no comforting fig leaf that you can use to hide.
It is also, arguably, the world’s oldest sport. Records of wrestling competitions exist amongst the annals of ancient Greece and Egypt. By contrast, basketball was invented in the 1800′s.
Wrestling is not biased against a certain size, height, weight, or body type. Whether you are 100 pounds or 280 pounds, there is a spot on the team for you. Men with no legs or missing arms have wrestled. The blind have wrestled (their grips are scary enormous!) and have done quite well. The tiny, like Sam Henson (I dare not call him tiny to his face!), or the gigantic, like Rulon Gardner and Alexander Karelin, can carve out a space in wrestler lore. The tall and lanky slicksters, like Kendall Cross, as well as the stocky brawlers, like Tom Brands, can win championships.
Sam Henson
While discipline is prevalent in all sports (From watching my sister compete, I’ve gained a great respect for cross-country runners.), the discipline required in wrestling is particularly intense. The conditioning workouts are enough to kill a small horse. Perhaps the most taxing is the strength of mind needed to maintain a wrestler’s diet. Wrestlers watch their diets like hawks, and it takes considerable mental toughness to maintain a balance between laziness and extreme and unsafe measures.
Once you have put all the hard work into preparing yourself, there’s nothing like engaging in a hard fought battle on the mat, walking off afterwards feeling like a mack truck hit you.
Rulon Gardner
Perhaps I’m biased. Well, I think there’s no doubt: I competed in it for 15 years and have coached for 3. I have been intimately involved since I was 9 years old. For me, wrestling is something spiritual; to be successful, one must display many of the character qualities of a disciple.
Though things like courage, fortitude, and perseverance are found in many places and in all sports, you will find them in abundance in wrestling. If you look into the eyes of someone who has spent a lifetime in it, you will see a depth of soul that a precious few have known.
So, you see, calling wrestling the “world’s oldest and greatest sport” is no empty boast.
Still working on the aforementioned post on the NCAA wrestling tourney. For now, head over to Flowrestling to catch an up-close glimpse of some of the unique aspects of this incredible sport. Good videos, good interviews, good blogs.
The 2009 NCAA Division I Wrestling Tournament just wrapped up a few hours ago. My beloved Buckeyes came SO close to pulling it off this year.
I know most of you don’t give a hoot about wrestling, but you should. More on that tomorrow. For now, check out the following Youtube videos on Anthony Robles, 125 lb wrestler from Arizona St. What’s special about him is that he was born with one leg, yet he became an All-American this year, pulling off some stunning upsets.
Highlights from a HUGE upset of Iowa’s Falck:
Robles interview after quarterfinals (one round later):
Robles on the Early Show a few years back during his senior year of high school:
After his last match today, he was given a standing ovation by the whole arena of 16,000 fans. I wish I was there to join in on that. This is just one of the many reasons why this sport is special.
